Beechcraft D95A N5639S

Summary

On 31 January 2003 at about 03:37 local time, a Beechcraft D95A registered N5639S was involved in an accident near Lancaster, California, United States. 2 people were on board and 2 died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

31 January 2003 at 03:37

Classification

Accident

Location

Lancaster, California, United States

Nearest airport

General Wm J Fox Airfield (WJF)

Coordinates

33.7464, -118.2200

Aircraft

Beechcraft D95A

Registration

N5639S

Category

Airplane

Engines

2

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Instructional

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Lancaster → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

VMC

Light

Night

NTSB number

LAX03FA078

2 people died.

a loss of aircraft control due to the instructor pilot's incapacitation by seizure activity as a result of his undiagnosed cancer, and his use of a medication that can increase seizure risk.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

The airplane collided with a hangar during a go-around. The flight crew entered the traffic pattern and completed one touch-and-go landing. The crew requested, and the controller cleared them, for a simulated single engine full stop landing on runway 24. The controller thought that the touch-and-go approach and landing was unremarkable and perfectly normal. On the single engine full stop approach, he thought that the airplane made a short approach with the wings rocking back and fourth. The airplane looked like it was low and could possibly land short of the runway. As the airplane approached the end of the runway, it began to veer to the left (from the flight crew's perspective). The controller said it appeared to be headed directly for the control tower as it continued to drift left. The airplane stayed low to the ground and the controller had the impression that the flight crew was attempting to climb. The wing lights were continuously rocking back and fourth as the airplane continued to drift left and it crossed the dirt infield and a taxiway while still airborne. The bank angle then increased sharply to the left, and the airplane disappeared behind some hangars. The controller estimated that the airplane was 1,500 feet from the approach end of the runway when he observed a fireball and alerted rescue crews. The instructor pilot's autopsy noted undiagnosed lung cancer that had metastasized to his brain. The brain showed evidence of severe swelling, with disruption of the normal brain structure. The instructor pilot had been prescribed a pain medication (tramadol), which was found in the instructor pilot's blood at a level consistent with regular use at least at the dose prescribed. The medication is known to increase the risk for seizures, particularly in patients with other potential seizure risks. The effects of the brain swelling and the medication likely produced seizure activity in the instructor which could have significantly interfered with the aircraft controls and made it difficult or impossible for the student to have adequately controlled the aircraft.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.